Do I need to take a prenatal vitamin if I'm breastfeeding?

Continuing to take prenatal vitamins while breastfeeding is a good idea to make sure you're getting essential vitamins and minerals. Most women can get all necessary vitamins and minerals from food if they're eating a well-balanced diet. But that can be hard to do when you're taking care of a baby, a home, and perhaps a career as well.

One mineral many women lack — before, during, and after they have children — is iron. Since women lose blood every month when they menstruate (and women who give birth lose quite a lot during delivery), most have reduced iron stores throughout their childbearing years.

Also, you need 1,000 milligrams of calcium a day when nursing — about what you'd get in three 8-ounce glasses of milk. Unless you're an avid dairy eater, it can be hard to get that much calcium from food. Even prenatal supplements contain only about 200 mg of calcium, so you still need to drink your milk (or calcium-fortified orange juice) and eat dairy products such as yogurt and cheese.

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